Harvard (0-0) vs Marist (0-0)
November 4, 2024 at 05:00 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: Harvard -4.5 / Marist +4.5 — Over/Under: 131
The Marist Red Foxes and the Harvard Crimson meet Monday in college basketball action from Lavietes Pavilion. Here’s a Marist vs Harvard prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Marist vs Harvard pick. We will examine:
The Marist Red Foxes recent form and player performance
The Harvard Crimson recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Marist Red Foxes
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Harvard Crimson
Recent betting trends in games played between Marist and Harvard
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Marist vs Harvard game
Marist Red Foxes Betting Preview
Last year the Foxes managed an 18-13 run overall with a 12-8 MAAC record. Marist ended up behind only Quinnipiac and Fairfield in the conference standings. After a conference tourney win over Niagara, the Foxes fell to Fairfield in the semifinals.
Head coach John Dunne is now in his seventh year at the helm with Marist. He’ll get three of last year’s starters back, which certainly will help the Foxes’ fortunes. Jaden Collins-Roberts (9.0 PPG) and Josh Pascarelli (10.7 PPG) will combine to form Marist’s backcourt, and they’ll both have sizable roles.
Harvard Crimson Betting Preview
Over on the Harvard side, they barely swam above .500 last year at 14-13 overall and went just 5-9 in Ivy League play. finished ahead of only Columbia, Penn and Dartmouth with that result, and ultimately finished the season on a three-game losing streak.
The Crimson’s Tommy Amaker is back for his 17th season at the helm. He’ll get back two starters from last year, but that doesn’t include guard Malik Mack (17.2 PPG), who left for Georgetown. A total of 57 percent of Harvard’s scoring from last year is gone, and 43 percent of their rebounding.
Why the Harvard Crimson will win
- Harvard has won six of its last seven home games against non-Conference opponents.
- Marist has lost the first half in three of its last four games.
Why the Marist Red Foxes will win
- Harvard has lost 12 of its last 15 day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
- Marist has won six of its last eight day games against non-Conference opponents.
- Harvard has lost the first half in four of its last five day games.
Matchup/League Facts
- Harvard ranked 45th among Division 1 teams for opponent free throw percentage last season (69.2%).
- Marist ranked 5th among Division 1 teams for opponent points per game last season (62.2).
- Marist ranked 360th among Division 1 teams for field goal attempts per game last season (52.8).
Marist vs Harvard Prediction
I’ll lean toward Marist here. The Red Foxes should have plenty of confidence heading into 2024-25, as they’re coming off a fairly successful season, all things considered. It’ll be a new look with more focus on the backcourt though, so we likely won’t see Marist pushing too many teams around physically.
As for Harvard, they’ve got some scoring holes to make up for this year. The team’s top returning scoring Louis Lesmond (9.8 PPG) should help fill in the gaps, and with Chandler Pigge taking a bigger role the Crimson should be able to rack up some wins. For now though, I don’t think they’ll cover in the opener.